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  1. nukon

    Marine Corps aviation and infantry

    It's not so much 'choosing' as it is submitting your preferences for job and location then hoping for the best. Basically the list of open billets (jobs/locations) gets sent out by a person called the 'monitor'. If your tour is over and you're up for new orders, you submit your preferences to...
  2. nukon

    Marine Corps aviation and infantry

    Possible, yes. Likely? Not as of now. They hold "transition boards" each year that certain pilots can apply for based on supply/demand of various types of pilots. These are not common and are competitive; do not make this a part of your calculus. "Standard fleet orders to fleet squadrons"...
  3. nukon

    FAC Tour: The good and the bad

    Let the zombies come - still not convinced EWS is worth it. They just keep making it longer and longer.
  4. nukon

    IFS affecting future learning

    Disclaimer that syllabi change and I went through IFS/API in 2015, but, I'd say your actual aviation foundation comes from primary. In IFS/API, you'll learn aviation terms and concepts, but generally they are more screening tools than they are education. Everything you're tested on in API will...
  5. nukon

    CMV-22B Osprey Rollout

    Yes, taxi obstacle height is a NATOPS limit for us and we usually land beyond any gear. As for the roll on, most VMMs plan for a 10% HOGE torque margin at the ship (at least in training) to facilitate coming to hover and landing vertically to the helo spots. A roll on requires less mast torque...
  6. nukon

    USN Another call to "bring back S-3's" (Vikings are Zombies)

    It does not. Allegedly a side effect of it being a joint venture with the USAF and their long runways - incidentally, the same reason was also cited in the ready room for the lack of a tacan and the tiny tires/brakes
  7. nukon

    Test Pilot

    Become an officer, become a naval aviator, do a fleet tour, apply for a test pilot school/program. If accepted, attending would incur an additional service obligation.
  8. nukon

    Retirement: BRS/High 3

    Earlier in the thread, it was asked if the government match counted towards the 18.5k contribution limit, and if there was any way to have the match go towards the Roth TSP. From a TSP.gov representative, here are the concrete answers:
  9. nukon

    All things MV-22 Osprey

    Brand new CV guys come through the Marine FRS, get a MV-22 NATOPS check, then head off to Kirtland for follow-on CV training. They maintain a cadre of USAF IPs and an O-5 Det CO has an office next to the Marine COs (along with the Navy O5 Det COs office) When I was at -204, both Huey guys and...
  10. nukon

    All things MV-22 Osprey

    I don't know many who would prefer to be an FRS-I at MCAS New River over living better (and farther from the flagpole) at NASNI. I have no reason (other than hope) to suspect it will be an option, but in my mind it would make sense to send a few Marine IPs over there until the CMV guys get...
  11. nukon

    All things MV-22 Osprey

    Word from C-2 guys going through transition syllabus at the Marine V-22 FRS is that the Navy FRS will be at NASNI, and that the Marine Corps plans on doing everything in their power to keep Marine tilt guys from flying CODplopters - be it as a member of the green team or the blue team.
  12. nukon

    Do you use an iPad in the cockpit? Would you?

    Rumor has it the guys over at the MATS building here are testing/implementing some (theoretically) pretty sweet new android "MAG TABs" that integrate with pretty cool technologies (JMPS, BFT, among other things), and are intended to be issued to squadrons with special laptops. If it ends up...
  13. nukon

    Retirement: BRS/High 3

    Appreciate the tip on the premature maturation. Also, with respect to maxing the TSP - what, if any, is the benefit of splitting the amount required to max among the incentive/special pays vs. just using a larger percentage from base pay? I'd be very interested in the answer to this. I was...
  14. nukon

    AMEX Platinum

    Just message them and let them know. They'll look into it, then make it right. I got an $1000 credit to my account for 2 years worth of previously paid annual fees.
  15. nukon

    Sikorsky S-97 Raider Ground Tests Today

    Agreed, it looks awesome and I think I've got a little bit of tentative airframe envy. Looking forward to seeing more about it moving forward
  16. nukon

    Do you use an iPad in the cockpit? Would you?

    My experience is limited to C-172/C-12/V22, but I love the Otterbox Defender. The little detachable screencover/kickstand is pretty sweet for being able to toss it in my bag and not worrying about the front face of it getting dinged. The ability to have it propped up for watching movies or...
  17. nukon

    Do you use an iPad in the cockpit? Would you?

    Disclaimer: I'm a V22 guy. Part 1: I bought an iPad mini 4 back when the mil flight bag back when subscriptions were free, and I intend to renew. Just for preflight planning alone, I almost think the subscription is worth it; I use it before almost every flight. Stating it mildly, JMPS/VMPS...
  18. nukon

    New Car Help

    I liked having a 4WD SUV/truck because flight school had me moving to a different beach every 5-9 months for 2 years, and I preferred to pocket some cash on DITY/PPM moves vs just letting the government to do it (and possibly losing/destroying my stuff) - to each their own. Consider using the...
  19. nukon

    MCMAP at NAS Pensacola/Whiting/Corpus Christi

    Anecdotally, a friend checked in to MATSG-21 back when a month or two of downtime in the pool was standard. He tore his ACL doing MCMAP at the end TBS, so he became the MOC daddy (student managing the pool) for a very long time until he finally got cleared medically. He then had another month...
  20. nukon

    VT-31 or VT-35?

    T-44s. During the transition they made up red hats that said "Make the T-44 Great Again" In my experience, VT-31 finished a little sooner because they double-pumped guys on sims (as pilot and co-pilot, so 4 sims a day). Is faster training better training? It depends. Is finishing flight school...
  21. nukon

    MV-22 transiton to Anything?

    Was talking to a guy who has a buddy that crossed over to the 'finer seafaring service,' the USCG. Unclear whether it was fixed or rotary, and I believe they bump you down a pay grade for the privilege.
  22. nukon

    T-6B NATOPS, Primary Contact - Thinking Ahead

    No. Reason 1: It's a long war brother; you've got to come up for air at some point. I went full-throttle for all of primary and was still fighting through a motivation hangover a month into intermediate. Enjoy the time off, practice your hobby, stay fresh. Try to find a balance that'll be...
  23. nukon

    NEWS Air Force leadership talks frankly about pilot retention

    For the lazy, here's the breakdown of old vs USAF-New: New USAF: - <2 yrs: $150 - 2-6 yrs: $250 - 6-12 yrs: $700 - >12yrs: $1000 - >22yrs: $700 - >24yrs: $450 Rest-of-Us: - <2yrs: $125 - >2yrs: $156 - >3yrs: $188 - >4yrs: $206 - >6yrs: $650 - >14yrs: $840 - >22yrs: $585 -...
  24. nukon

    USN Solving the HT dilemma - extend life of TH-57 - move 30% of syllabus to sims

    While I don't disagree, I do feel it's at lest worth mentioning that the contractor named in the article just retired last year as the CO of MATSG-21, which owns all the Marines at Whiting Field. Maybe he knows something we don't. Regardless, glad to hear the sims are getting addressed...
  25. nukon

    Current aircraft assignments

    As far as students are concerned, the process is the exact same - you submit your airframe and coast preferences, ranked from happiest to saddest. It is still and indeed always will be based off the needs of the Navy/Marine Corps/Rebel Alliance, but in my experience, they factor your preferences...
  26. nukon

    Current aircraft assignments

    Just to be clear, after primary you select a pipeline, in this case 'maritime', not a specific aircraft. After selecting maritime, follow on to advanced multi-engine in Corpus Christi flying T-44s with VT-31 or VT-35. Once you complete the advanced syllabus and wing, then you're assigned either...
  27. nukon

    T45 status

    There was heavy buzz about an Osprey pilot going through the Whiting FITU in Spring of '16 - think he/she was headed to VT-6, and would've been the only one at Whiting I'd heard of in my time there. Any idea word on they won't send guys? They seem to send a good amount off to VT-35, which...
  28. nukon

    Blended Retirement System

    If I understand your question correctly: No - sort of. Neither the 1% DoD auto-contribution nor the 4% match count towards your annual contribution limit of $18,000, but it does count towards the less common $54,000 annual limit. From TSP.gov: Elective Deferral Limit $18,000 Applies to...
  29. nukon

    Places to live in Whiting

    Milton is as unexciting as promised, however, there is (was?) a pretty solid Po' Boy place. Other than that, can't really recommend it unless you really hate commuting. FWIW: I lived at 'Park on the Square' (500' from Governor's gate), my buddy lived in East Hill, and my girlfriend lived in...
  30. nukon

    PLC application process step by step

    Can't help you with the ROTC questions. When I went through PLC, they offered 2 programs for PLC guys - the financial assistance program, or 'FAP' (good!) and the tuition assistance program 'TAP' (very very bad). SparkNotes is: - FAP gave you a small annual stipend, I believe up to 3-4x, in...
  31. nukon

    PLC application process step by step

    There used to be a website 'Marine OCS Portal,' not sure if it's still around, but it was a much better source for OCS related info than airwarriors, which focuses on the aviation side - many of us are a little far removed from Brown Field. I did PLC in 2011/2013, and commissioned in 2014...
  32. nukon

    Airborne School for Marines

    Sober as a kite. MATSG-21 guys told me they have a ton of spots, but never really send anybody (go figure). I didn't actually end up going, but they did have orders to send me - even did an observed Army PFT and had to get a flight doc to sign off on a 'jump physical.' I don't claim that it...
  33. nukon

    Airborne School for Marines

    Yes they can, all one needs are the orders to go. Jump school itself has open seats all the time, which you can actually see for yourself on their website. I had orders (cut from MATSG-21) to go to jump school as a flight student student waiting to class up for intermediate. Can't comment on...
  34. nukon

    Add Wings to your profile: Pinning on new wings

    Winged NA out of Corpus on 7 April
  35. nukon

    Questions: Post TBS and Pcola

    TBS sucked for most, but not all of the six months spent there. Merely trying to highlight the highlights. Other than that and your deeply offensive accusation of horrible haircuttery, agreed on all fronts. My intent was simple. 1. There were good instructors and value added when I went...
  36. nukon

    Questions: Post TBS and Pcola

    1.Disclaimer: I checked in to the MOC office in early April of last year. Following TBS, we were given a 'NLT' of two weeks later to report to NAS Pensacola. I was one of the first from my TBS company to start IFS ~3 weeks later. A guy checked in 2 months after me, and started IFS 1.5 weeks...
  37. nukon

    All things MV-22 Osprey

    Adding to the talk of syllabus changes: rumor has it Navy will start selecting plopter pilots "soon"... EDIT: Come to think of it, guess this belongs more in 'All things CMV-22'
  38. nukon

    All things MV-22 Osprey

    Just selected tilt today. There continue to be steady rumblings of modifying the Osprey syllabus to include more time in the T6 and presumably less-to-none in the C-12.
  39. nukon

    Waste to pay for private pilot's license?

    Aye, it does. "WARNING: Elsanor airport is located approximately 1.5 nm southwest of the Chicken Ranch. A glider flying club operates VFR seven days a week up to the cloud bases. Not all of the gliders use a Mode C transponder; however, all have operable two-way VHF radios and monitor a common...
  40. nukon

    IFS with a rotor PPL?

    $.02: my roommate held a commercial helo rating and had to skip IFS (much to their chagrin)
  41. nukon

    Skipping IFS

    IFS is a good time - 'work' days are 2-4 hours in a polo shirt and shorts, and it's free (for you) low/no stress flying. It was a good transition from 'devil-may-care' post-TBS mindset to a more focused pre-API mindset for me. I believe if you find a way to attrite during IFS, your days were...
  42. nukon

    Looking for Updated info on Housing for API

    Just to really hammer this home: they make you sign something when you start IFS stating that you don't have any civilian ratings/certs. From another thread: Per CNATRAINST 3501.1C : SNA/SNFOs who already possess a Recreational, Private Pilot or higher civilian pilot certificate or previous...
  43. nukon

    MCTAP Questions

    The staff at my OSO really, really discouraged anyone who wasn't in absolute crisis from taking MCTAP - PEBD is a big deal. MCFAP, on the other hand, is the heat - do it. Your PEBD is where you'll make your money, you want it as far back in time as possible. If you're worried about college...
  44. nukon

    2015 TBS Dates/Co.

    Nice use of Kanye. Yep, excited about the quick turnaround, but you take the good with the bad - word from a couple of my buddies down there now is that my company is heading to Graves (the old hall that's on the "to be destroyed" list)
  45. nukon

    2015 TBS Dates/Co.

    Neg. Air (pilot) contract. An NFO from my office is one or two classes behind me, I want to say December, but I could've misheard.
  46. nukon

    2015 TBS Dates/Co.

    For what it's worth, I commissioned the first week of June and my projected TBS date is 2 Sep 2014
  47. nukon

    PLC at a community college

    FWIW, guy in my Senior's Plt. graduated from the University of Phoenix.. (online school)
  48. nukon

    some info on the PLC and OCC of the marine corp

    Yes, there is a brief essay on the application. Maybe 250 words. I strongly encourage you to have someone proofread it before submission. As for your previous question ("how can I be better understood?"): use capitalization and punctuation just as you would in a written paper. It's difficult to...
  49. nukon

    Max Pull-ups - How long did it take you?

    Pretty sweet dude, I'll be sure to let everyone back in 2008 know the secret to doing 25 pullups with 25 lbs on your "waste."
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